FDD Items 3 & 4 · 2026 filing
SpringHill Suites by Marriott litigation history
What SpringHill Suites by Marriott disclosed about lawsuits, arbitrations and bankruptcy in the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document. Item 3 lists the material legal actions a franchisor must report; Item 4 covers bankruptcy. This is the franchisor's own disclosure, not a court record, and not legal advice.
Items 3 & 4 at a glance
What the filing discloses
- Cases disclosed
- 21
- Item 3, as counted in the filing
- Largest disclosed settlement
- Not extracted
- Bankruptcy (Item 4)
- None
- Franchisor, parent, predecessor or officer
- Filing year
- 2026
- Disclosures cover the prior ten years
Extracted from the 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document
Item 3: litigation
Extensive litigation primarily arising from the 2018 Starwood data security incident (MDL class actions, City of Chicago suit, foreign regulatory actions/fines paid to UK ICO and Turkish KVKK, Canadian class actions), resort/destination fee investigations and lawsuits by state AGs, a franchisor-initiated AAA arbitration to collect over $1.8M in unpaid fees from a Knoxville franchisee, residential association litigation (St. Regis NY), a franchisee breach-of-covenant suit (Sheraton), and antitrust class actions re: STR/Amadeus data sharing. No brand-specific SpringHill Suites litigation identified.
Disclosure signals that moved the score
How this shows up in the verdict
- 15 litigation matters but tied to parent-wide data-breach MDL, normal for scale
The verdict grade is FranchiseVerdict's editorial assessment across SBA loan performance, unit growth, revenue and disclosure signals. It is not investment advice.
Before you weigh a lawsuit
How to read Item 3
A franchisor must disclose pending actions and any material civil action involving the franchise relationship, plus convictions or civil judgments for fraud, unfair or deceptive practices, or franchise-law violations, going back ten years. A case the franchisor brought against a franchisee counts too. Item 3 does not include every dispute: settled claims below the materiality line and matters resolved in private arbitration can be absent.
Questions worth asking current and former franchisees, using the contact list in Item 20:
- Were you, or anyone you know in the system, party to a dispute with the franchisor?
- Was it resolved by settlement, arbitration or a court, and on what terms?
- Has the number of disputes gone up or down since you signed?